Microsoft Surface

Earlier today, we reported that Microsoft CEO Steve Ballmer was quoted as saying that sales for the company's new Surface tablet were "modest," with the potential of sales picking up when the Surface Pro launches early next year. However, Microsoft says that he was actually referring to the ramping up of Surface production when he said "modest", not sales numbers.

If you're running Windows RT, you already have access to Office 2013 Home & Student, but last month there was a bit of controversy over the fact that Office 2013 Home & Student can't be used for commercial purposes. If you want to use Office in a business setting, you'll have to purchase a license, which are available today according to Software Ruminations. This means that businesses can now purchase licenses for their RT devices and use Office 2013 commercially to their hearts content.

Sales of Microsoft's first Surface tablet have started "modestly," CEO Steve Ballmer has conceded, though the outspoken exec is confident that demand will surge when the Surface Pro drops in early 2013. Having previously been bombastic about Surface's appeal to the market, Ballmer was apparently more taciturn in an interview with French newspaper Le Parisien.

Friday is here once again, but before you get too terribly sloshed, be sure you read through our recap of the day's big news! Today we heard that Judge Lucy Koh will examine claims of misconduct on the part of the jury foreman in the Samsung vs. Apple patent trial, and Apple is actually being dragged back to court for a dispute over FaceTime in the iPhone 5 and iPad mini. Speaking of the iPad mini, Apple confirmed today that the LTE iPad minis should be shipping out in the next five days, and the company announced that it will be donating $2.5 million to the Hurricane Sandy recovery effort on behalf of its employees.

Microsoft's latest product, the Surface tablet running Windows RT, might be generating a lot of hype, but early adopters are already noticing some issues with the tablet and its accessories. Specifically, some users are witnessing the edges of the Touch Cover splitting to expose the wires just days after having begun using it.

While Apple's many commercials can be considered "cute," if you will, some may say that they're still missing a little bit of pizzazz that would make them even more attention-getting. From the guys who brought you those funny Siri parody commercials, comes a new fake advertisement for the Microsoft Surface tablet.

Those of you waiting for the web browser known as Opera to join us here in the future - the future that includes "Retina" and otherwise high-definition displays galore - now is your day in the sun. Here we've got Opera 12.10, a version that takes on "support for high-DPI screens" in its extensions framework, complete with tightened extension security as well as several new APIs as well. This update also includes Fullscreen API for video, games, and web browsing - great for your brand new Microsoft Surface tablet, of course.

Microsoft unveiled a couple of Surface models last month, one with 32GB and the other with 64GB. Most people may think they'll be happy with the 32GB model, but because of bloatware and pre-installed software, the 32GB Surface actually only has 16GB of usable storage, while the 64GB has 45GB of usable storage.

Chatter of a 7-inch Xbox Surface tablet has reawakened, with sources claiming Microsoft is currently working in the initial hardware planning stages for a gaming-centric slate built on a custom Windows OS. The planned tablet is broadly in line with leaked specifications back in June, so insiders tell The Verge, though whether it runs a custom ARM processor or a new Intel SoC could depend on how well Intel can wow Microsoft. Unlike the first Surface tablet, which attempts a broad range of tasks, the Xbox Surface will be focused on gaming.

The folks that see how inexpensive an item is to produce and feel that the manufacturer should have little to no profit over this cost are certainly not going to enjoy what they're hearing from IHS iSuppli about Microsoft today, that's for sure. With a a Bill of Materials (BOM) cost of $271 USD and a $13 USD manufacturing cost, the total cost of the Microsoft Surface RT with minimum 32GB NAND flash memory becomes $248 in all, this placing it well below retail price at $599. IHS iSuppli note that compared to the low-end iPad (that being the iPad 2 in this case), the Surface RT generates a greater profit margin in percentage terms and on a per-unit basis as well.